Tate Donovan, star of BLOOD FEST, was born to a large family in Tenafly, New Jersey, the son of Eileen Frances (McAllister) and John Timothy Donovan, a surgeon. He is of Irish descent. Donovan moved to Los Angeles to be closer to the television industry while he attended college at USC, where he also met several fellow actors who became longtime friends, such as Grant Heslov and George Clooney, with whom he still parties with to this day (he also had a fairly substantial part in their smash film, Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005). Although not quite as active as his friend Clooney in the romantic arena, confirmed bachelor Donovan has been engaged to both film star Sandra Bullock and television icon Jennifer Aniston, and has dated a diverse group of women such as socialite Plum Sikes (2000), stage actress Whitney Allen (2001) and television actress Lauren Graham, whom he met when they both appeared in the play "Once in a Lifetime" at the Williamstown Theater Festival in 2002. After graduating from college, Donovan gained prominent notice for his portrayal of the charismatic yet self-centered co-pilot in the ensemble period drama Memphis Belle (1990). Prior to that, Donovan had appeared as the cocky elder camper in SpaceCamp (1986) and as a recovering drug addict in Clean and Sober (1988). His first leading role was in the charming but minor Love Potion No. 9 (1992), costarring Bullock, to whom he became engaged (their relationship ended in 1994). He then appeared in several independent features as sullen, withdrawn types before following up with a role in the Disney family comedy, Holy Matrimony (1994). He returned to Disney for perhaps his highest-profile effort to date, the animated Hercules (1997), for which he provided the voice for the adult version of the title character. His small-screen work has included a Cable ACE-nominated turn in the HBO series Vietnam War Story II (1988) (V). He joined the parade of film stars who turned to sitcoms, heading the cast of Partners (1995) opposite Jon Cryer. When that failed to catch on, he joined with his "Memphis Belle" co-stars Eric Stoltz and Reed Diamond to play three brothers in a memorable episode of NBC's Homicide: Life on the Street (1993) and had a recurring role as a client and potential love interest for Calista Flockhart's titular lawyer Ally McBeal (1997). Switching networks, he had a recurring role as a love interest opposite his then-girlfriend Jennifer Aniston in NBC's Friends (1994) and donned clerical garb to play the priest son of a large Irish Catholic family in the short-lived NBC drama Trinity (1998). More recently he has appeared as a guest star in several shows such as The Guardian (2001), as well as Mister Sterling (2003) and in the new show The O.C. (2003).

OWEN EGERTON

Screenwriter and novelist Owen Egerton is the writer/director of the psychological horror film Follow. He's also the author of the story collection How Best to Avoid Dying and the novels Everyone Says That at the End of the World and The Book of Harold, the Illegitimate Son of God, which Warner Bros. optioned for development as a television series. He co-wrote the screenplay Bobbie Sue, which sold to Warner Bros. after appearing on the 2007 Blacklist. Egerton has gone on to write for Warner Brothers, Disney, and Fox Studios.

Egerton is also one of the writing and performing talents behind the Alamo Drafthouse's Master Pancake Theater and hosts public radio's The Write Up.

Egerton is also the author of four novels including The Book of Harold, the Illegitimate Son of God, which Warner Bros. optioned and most recently Hollow, named one of the best books of 2018 by NPR.

LANA LINK

Lana Link, the Moving Picture Institute's vice president of talent development, recruits filmmakers into MPI's grant programs and masterclasses, which she also produces. She also writes and produces original screenplays, such as GRINGA, a short film premiering in 2018. She is a creative producer for Webby-winning online comedy news channel WE THE INTERNET TV and has associate producer credits on documentaries including MAMA RWANDA and INCARCERATING US. She has years of experience mentoring filmmakers in their careers and during all stages of production, including marketing and distribution. Lana is a graduate of the University of Chicago and a former Fulbright grant recipient in Vienna, Austria. She earned her JD from Pepperdine University School of Law and her certificate in independent producing from UCLA Extension. Lana is an associate member of the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences.

SEBASTIAN TWARDOSZ

Born in Poland, and raised in Detroit, Michigan, Sebastian has worked with leading companies in both film and television for the last seventeen years. He is currently a partner in the film distribution company Circus Road Film (circusroadfilms.com) which advises and represents emerging filmmakers.

He was previously a senior acquisitions executive for Allumination FilmWorks (a division of Content Media Corp.) which specialized in the domestic distribution and foreign sales of independently produced feature films. While there he managed one of the company's main accounts - a licensing agreement with the Slamdance Film Festival.

Before that, Sebastian was the head of development for a Paramount-based production company called Craftsman Films which developed numerous studio projects, including early drafts of the feature film reinvention of the Star Trek franchise.

For three years, he worked in comedy and drama development at Touchstone Television, the TV production division of the Walt Disney Company and ABC, where he staffed on six produced pilots. He also worked on numerous pilots and on-air TV series for Imagine Entertainment.

Sebastian recently co-produced the independent feature Small Town Saturday Night starring Chris Pine. He has also served as an adjunct professor at both UCLA and USC teaching the art and business of film.

TED CHALMERS

A veteran of sales and distribution, Ted Chalmers serves as president and CEO of Tom Cat Films LLC. He has been involved with the sales and distribution of such well-known films as “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre”, “Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation”, “Hellraiser”, “Escape from New York”, “One False Move”, “Re-animator”, “Bride of Re-animator”, “Society” and “Evil Dead 2”.

Ted began his career in 1990 working with Paul Rich at Trans Atlantic Entertainment. After its sale to Lakeshore, he went on to lead the sales at Creative Light Entertainment and Moving Pictures Film and Television. He was also Senior VP at Media Brokerage for ICAP

Media, a division of ICAP Plc. As a leader in film distribution to foreign markets, Ted successfully distributes feature, indie, and made for DVD films throughout the world. His brand is globallyrecognized allowing new, independent and seasoned filmmakers to access the world audience. The key to Ted’s success is leveraging his long term relationships with buyers in foreign countries and effectively structuring distribution opportunities creating revenue streams for maximum global profits.

RYAN SWENAR

Ryan Swenar is an award-winning producer and Director of Acquisitions for Dreamscape Media.With more than 10 years of industry experience, Ryan has acquired and sold over 700 scripted andunscripted video properties, including feature films, documentaries, and television content.He has produced over 150 children’s videos and documentaries. In 2016, he adapted the award-winning picture book Drum Dream Girl, for which he was awarded the Andrew Carnegie Medal forExcellence in Children’s Video the following year.